Asian stocks and oil declined July 25 2011, Barack Obama and Congress failed to reach a deal on raising the debt limit

Asian stocks and oil declined July 25 2011, Barack Obama and Congress failed to reach a deal on raising the debt limit - U.S. Economy Prediction july 2011 ; Asian stocks and oil declined for the first time in five days, while Treasuries dropped and gold rallied to a record as President Barack Obama and Congress failed to reach a deal on raising the debt limit, intensifying concern the nation will default.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index slipped 0.7 percent as of 11:31 a.m. in Tokyo. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures lost 0.9 percent to 1,328.30. Yields on 10-year Treasuries gained three basis points. The dollar sank 0.7 percent against the Swiss franc. It traded at 78.47 yen after earlier reaching a four- month low. Gold added as much as 1.4 percent to $1,624.07 an ounce. Oil fell 0.9 percent in New York.

U.S. House Speaker John Boehner told Republicans that there’s no agreement on a plan for raising the ceiling before a default threatened for Aug. 2, risking a cut to the nation’s AAA credit rating. As Democrats and Republicans endorsed dueling plans for raising the debt ceiling, China, the top holder of American debt, said it remains confident an agreement will be reached before the deadline, according to Xia Bin, an adviser to the People’s Bank of China.

“Stock markets around the globe will look to price in a greater uncertainty premium on account of political squabbles in the world’s largest economy and the increasing risk that it may lose its sacred AAA rating,” Mohamed A. El-Erian, chief executive officer and co-chief investment officer at Pacific Investment Management Co., wrote in an e-mail. His firm is the world’s biggest manager of bond funds. “A last-minute political compromise will avoid a default but will leave the AAA rating extremely vulnerable,” he said.

U.S. Economy Prediction july 2011

The impasse may further aggravate the slowing U.S. recovery. The Commerce Department may say on July 29 gross domestic product rose at a 1.8 percent annual pace in the second quarter after a 1.9 percent gain in the previous three months, according to the median forecast of 69 economist surveyed by Bloomberg News. Home sales languished and consumer confidence dimmed, other data may show.

The dollar fell 0.7 percent to 81.38 Swiss centimes from 81.92 last week. It earlier fell to 78.12 yen, the weakest level since March 17. Japan’s monetary authorities “will take resolute actions when necessary” in the currency markets, Kyodo News reported Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda as saying yesterday. Noda said today that he’s watching developments on the U.S. debt talks.

The Australian dollar weakened against 13 of its 16 most- actively traded counterparts and fell 0.5 percent to 84.86 yen as speculation that the U.S. may default sapped demand for higher-yielding assets. South Korea’s won retreated from a three-year high, dropping 0.1 percent to 1,053.48 per dollar.

Oil retreated to $99.04 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, following four straight weeks of gains. Immediate- delivery gold traded at $1,611.16 an ounce, up 0.6 percent, while cash silver rose 0.6 percent to $40.3237 an ounce. Corn for December delivery sank 1.9 percent to $6.7225 a bushel, while wheat slid 1.5 percent to $6.82 a bushel.